Melting Fast

This picture, I hope, tells a story of why the burns are so high on such a beautiful day. Thankfully we are finished at this section and we had a couple of very heavy bags of kit to carry back to the car about 2km away.

Notable highlight today was a scary encounter with an adder. Previously when I have found one they are coiled up sleepily enjoying the sun and I have got safely within a foot with the compact to get a picture. No chance of that today.
I am unsure, but I may have unwittingly trodden on the animal, as my first indication of its presence was a really loud hiss (like air being released from a a forecourt tyre pump) right behind me. I looked back two paces and the animal was standing with its head up and as I moved around it turned its head periscope fashion not releasing its gaze from me for an instant. It was an aggressive stance and the suggestion was that it didn't want to be today's blip; and that's fine.

For the rest of the day I was hyper conscious of picking up any kit placed on the ground and when I returned to the rucksack for food I tipped its contents out rather than putting my hand in and finding a snake eating my lunch.